by David Ball
Staff Writer
It’s been more than seven years since voters approved the Better Jacksonville Plan that included construction of a new county courthouse, and it appears the City Council isn’t going to rush what could be the final hurdle before shovels hit the dirt.
In front of a good showing of judges and attorneys, Council President Daniel Davis led Wednesday’s special meeting that he said would be the first of several, including a public hearing, in the coming weeks to hash out options for the project.
Determined to start off on the right foot, Davis stopped everything a few minutes into the discussions to ensure the opening prayer was read.
“If there was ever a meeting we need to pray over,” said Davis.
The Council spent little time during this first three-hour session debating what version of the courthouse to build (the $263 million criminal court-only model, Mayor John Peyton’s $400 million proposal or some combination) or where to build it (at the proposed La Villa site or at the Prime Osborn Convention Center).
Instead, Davis steered the conversation towards how the project, in any form, will be funded. Not surprisingly, Tuesday’s voter-approved tax amendment and the reported $60 million shortfall projected to impact the City’s budget was a chief concern.
“I think we need to take a moment and back up,” said Council member Stephen Joost. “How can we go forward with the courthouse at this point without knowing what areas we’re going to have to cut?”
Peyton’s Chief Administrative Officer Alan Mosley and Policy Chief Adam Hollingsworth said Council will have to work with City administration to address the shortfall, which they said would be more like $30-$40 million, as they did this year by cutting spending and instituting three new service fees to combat state-mandated budget cuts.
“The courthouse is a critical infrastructure to this community,” said Mosley, who repeated it several times.
Council has already authorized and money is available for the original proposal to build a new courthouse for criminal cases while keeping civil cases at the current aging courthouse on Bay Street.
The mayor’s proposal for a unified courthouse serving needs through 2025 requires the City borrowing $140 million to add to the $211 million available from the Better Jacksonville Plan, $40 million generated by traffic ticket surcharges and $4.2 million from the Public Buildings Trust Fund.
By fiscal year 2011-12, the City will have an annual debt service of $11 million until the project is paid for. Although the money goes through the City’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP), Hollingsworth and Mosley said the typical district projects, both current and future, wouldn’t be affected.
Council members Davis, Joost and Denise Lee didn’t seem convinced.
“I don’t see how you can sit there and say it’s not going to affect other projects,” said Joost. “Something’s going to have to give somewhere.”
Davis added, “Clearly, potential projects will be affected.”
Davis also spent time asking Deputy General Counsel Cindy Laquidara to clarify the legal reason why, after voters approved the project at a certain scope and budget, the mayor’s office can present an augmented proposal to the Council without the item having to go back to a public vote.
Laquidara said the Council also authorized the contracted design-build firm to give preliminary designs on a unified criminal/civil courthouse, and the scope of the bid allowed for the project to change.
“In my opinion, the scope offered to bidders...is sufficiently broad should the Council choose to expand,” she said.
The council also discussed why the Convention Center wasn’t a viable option, and staff provided an engineering report by Spillis Candela showing the cost to renovate and convert the Prime Osborn would be $20 million more than building a new courthouse.
In the end, the Council asked staff to provide all the written documentation available, from staff-level reports to minutes from the courthouse task force meetings, to continue the debate.
Chief Judge Don Moran sat in the front row and was there to answer questions, although none were asked. He said despite waiting years for a new courthouse to materialize, the Council discussions showed progress.
“They are trying to exercise what truly is their responsibility,” he said. “Yeah, I’d like it to happen faster, but they are doing what they need to.
“They have to answer to a lot of people,” he added. “If I was on the council, I’d want the same information in front of me.”